The Past is the Past, but the Future is Right Now
by Amira Reidroc
Summary: Vivian Scarlet Atwood wakes up not knowing anything about herself, or anything else, for that matter. However, being strong willed despite severe injuries, she risks her life to find out who she is. Lance/OC
1. Chapter 1

**PLEASE READ THE DISCLAIMER OR ELSE. D:**

**Disclaimer:** _Please note this is a **fanfiction.** While details and whatnot may be different, please acknowledge that the author has a style, and characters have personalities, and the author has tried to stay as in-character as possible. This fanfiction is a mixture of the games, the Pokemon Special manga, and possibly the anime. Lance himself is more of the Pokemon Special manga in character, with a mixed look. _

_**Also. When I read a story and I don't like it, I simply don't review it with a nasty comment. If there's something the author really needs to work on, I'll say something. But, if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it. Constructive criticism is hard to discern from simple "I think your story sucks" comments, so if you do have CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, say so in your review/private message. I think that's only fair.**_

I also do not own Pokemon, or anything related to Pokemon except Vivian. :3

So with that in mind, please try to enjoy.

* * *

I tried opening my eyes, only to shut them tightly again against the glare of a bright light. After a moment, I slowly opened them, slowly sitting up. As I sat up, I suddenly felt the racking pain in my head and my body, and I moaned, and sunk back into the soft bed, closing my eyes, my hair all around me. I breathed in, and I breathed out.

_What happened to me?_

I couldn't remember; my head was throbbing violently, and I realized, as I brought my hand to touch it, that my hand was criss crossed with white bandages, and I examined my arm; it too, was covered in bandages. I blinked, not knowing what else to do, but raised my other hand to look at it. It wasn't as heavily bandaged, but I noticed quite a few purple spots; these were old, and fading. I winced, and let my arm back onto the bed. I couldn't help it; I hurt all over, and for some reason, I felt a terrible sadness in my heart, and I didn't know why.

As a matter of fact, I didn't know anything, at all. It struck me as odd, and when I tried prying further, it only hurt my head and I recoiled from it, sinking deeper into the pillows, shutting my eyes against the light.

"Ah, awake at last, Sleeping Beauty." An unfamiliar voice sounded, and I flinched; the voice hurt my ears, but I kept my eyes shut.

"The light…" my voice was hoarse, as if I hadn't used it in quite a while, or properly.

"Oh, I'm dreadfully sorry…" there was the sound of the shuffling of feet, and then the light grew noticeably dimmer, and I slowly opened my eyes to come face to face with a man about sixty. He didn't seem to be very tall, and he wore a polo shirt with khaki pants and dress shoes; very plain, and his hair was cut short, but it was gray. His eyes, however, were brown, and they sparkled with concern as he stared at me. "How are you feeling?" he asked gently.

"Like horse shit," I muttered, looking at him with my eyes half closed. He laughed heartily before regaining his composure almost immediately.

"That's good; at least you feel something."

"Hey mister…who're you?" I asked, feeling like I should know.

"Oh yes! We've never met before!" he slapped himself with his palm on the forehead before introducing himself. "I am Professor Oak, and this is my house, which is right next to my lab. You are in the Kanto region, Vivian."

"Vivian? Is that my name?" I asked, feeling like it was. The professor's expression changed immediately to shock.

"You…don't remember?" he asked, and I shook my head, only slightly; it hurt horribly.

"I don't remember anything." I said nonchalantly. The professor ran his hands through his hair, looking exasperated.

"Oh, dear oh dear…" he muttered, and then he walked quickly out of the room, leaving me in my silence.

"What-aw, whatever…" I was going to ask him some more questions, but he left too quickly and I was too tired to do anything. As a matter of fact, I passed out almost immediately.

-.-.-.-.-.

"Hey, sleepy head." This time, waking up wasn't quite so painful, and I was able to sit upright to look at the person addressing me. He was cute; his brown hair was light from being in the sun too long, and looked thick as it flipped over his head in a weird fashion that actually looked good on him. His eyes were deep green, and he was wearing a loose black t-shirt with gray cargo pants and tennis shoes. He had a Yin Yang pendant on a thin string around his neck, and he had thick black wristbands that looked sort of fuzzy. His left hand sported a fingerless black glove, and on his belt were six tiny, round, red and white balls.

"Who're you?" I asked, curiously taking him in. "Where's the professor?" The man blinked, and chuckled slightly.

"Wow, you must've gotten hit in the head really hard." He said, a faint smile on his face. "I've been taking care of you for the past week." I stared at him.

"Really?" I breathed, and I noticed I didn't have as many bandages as I had had the first time I woke up, and my head didn't hurt anywhere near as bad.

"Yes; I'm Green, by the way." He said, resting his elbows on his knees as he sat on his chair, watching me with slight amusement. "You're Vivian, you're 16 years old, and you've been dead to the world for the past two weeks."

"Green?"

"Yeah?"

"What're you doing in Professor Oak's house?" He grinned.

"This is my house too; the professor is just Gramps to me." I stared at him.

"He's your grandfather?" Green nodded, still watching me with amusement as I didn't say anything else. I didn't have anything to say, and I didn't know what to say. "I've had Alakazam slowly repair the mental damage done to you," he started, "Seeing as how you had a horrible concussion and the doctor said you might never wake up again, and Alakazam had the brilliant idea to try, and here you are, awake."

"What's an Alakazam?"

[an hour later]

GREEN'S POV

Vivian had fallen asleep almost as soon as I had stopped talking. I sighed, pulled her covers up to cover her, and then I left the room, closing the door and turning the light off behind me. I walked down the hall to Gramps' room, where I didn't bother knocking on the door but rather walked in and leaned against the wall as I waited for him to realize I was there. After about five minutes of his typing furiously away on the computer, I cleared my throat, and he jumped, and looked at me, before letting loose a sigh of relief.

"She doesn't even remember what Pokemon are." I stated, and he just stared. "I think she catches on quickly though, remembering it as it's told to her, but I don't think she'll be able to recall anything about herself for a while, if ever, and Alakazam agrees with me." Gramps sighed, looking more worn out than usual. I noticed the empty beer cans stuck in his trash can, but I chose to ignore them. He must be having an incredibly hard time, what with Vivian being here and Lance doing what he was doing.

"It's horrible, what she had to go through," Gramps muttered, more to himself than to me, "Lance has made me promise not to tell her anything that might make her remember-"

"What?! Why would he want to do that?!"

"Green, you don't know the half of what she's had to live with." I stared at Gramps; he rarely used this tone with me, let alone anyone else, and something truly terrible must've happened to her if he was unwilling to share it. "Lance almost broke into tears telling me about it, he cares so much for her."

"Lance, the Dragon Master, crying? I find that hard to believe." I scoffed, folding my arms, and he glared at me.

"It's not a laughing matter Green. Lance needs you and Red to help him with this change in leagues, and what with the all the damage caused to the Plateau two weeks ago…"

"What happened at the Plateau…" I paused, "Does it have anything to do with Vivian?" He didn't answer immediately, and I realized how cluttered his usually spotless work room was. Papers were everywhere, empty coffee mugs were left here and there, and Gramps looked like he hadn't slept in days. The blinds were closed, not letting any light in aside from the ancient luminescent lighting in the ceiling, and half of them were off, and more than one was flickering ominously. With the glow from the outdated PC on his face, the room and Gramps looked like something from a scary movie.

"Unfortunately, it does, but we're not going to discuss it. If Lance feels you need to know, he'll tell you."

"Highly confidential meaning far too personal for Lance, I assume." I muttered, almost understanding Lance's attachment to the girl a few feet down the hall. Gramps only nodded, his face set in a grim look. "Maybe you should get some rest, old man. You look like you haven't slept for days."

"I haven't." he admitted, turning back to the computer. "But with Alakazam healing her brain, do you have any idea what a breakthrough that is? Brains are almost impossible to repair once damaged! I've been up all the days and nights writing about it!" he almost looked maniacal. "I've also been on the phone, on and off, covering up Vivian's disappearance, keeping her hidden from her parents, and so on."

"Why do we need to hide her from her parents? Wouldn't it be a good idea to give her back to them so we wouldn't have to worry about her?"

"Green…that is where the confidentiality starts. Unless Lance tells you, or Vivian remembers and tells you, I cannot say anything. Legally, in Johto, she's now listed as dead, and her funeral was held last week." My eyes widened.

"Then shouldn't we give her a different name, if she's supposed to be in hiding?"

"Her middle and last names will change; I have here somewhere papers for her, saying she is Vivian Scarlet Atwood. According to the papers, she's come from Almia, where there aren't any Pokemon trainers; rather only Pokemon Rangers, which will explain why she doesn't have any Pokemon of her own, and it will be very easy for her to start as a rookie, should she want to."

"Didn't she have her own Pokemon?" I dared to ask, and Gramps didn't answer. I took his silence as saying something bad happened to them. "I understand…"

"Green, be careful what you say around her. She's still in a terribly fragile state of mind." He said, and I nodded and turned to leave the room.

"I have some things to take care of; I'll be back later tonight." I said, closing Gramps' door behind me, and I walked down the hallway, through a living room, and out the front door to inhale the sweet scent of fresh grass the wind blew over the rolling hills of Pallet Town. I shoved my hands in my pockets as I thought about Vivian, and kicked a pebble by my shoe as I made my way down the familiar beaten path.

* * *

_How exciting! Le story begins. _

_Just who is Vivian Scarlet Atwood really...?_


	2. Chapter 2

AN UPDATE! Lyk no wai. D: )

So, I have a crap ton of notes on this story it's almost ridiculous, considering it's a fanfiction. Ah well. It's fun, and it keeps me busy during class. xD

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokemon. ;-;

Guess what guys. Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver are coming out in the spring of 2010. Check it out. Just Google it. x]

IT'S AWESOME. :peace:

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VIVIAN'S POV

I sat on the grass, scowling. Yet another child had come by to get their first Pokémon, and there I was, sitting on the grass, crutches next to me, unable to do much of anything. I had walked a mile today on them; and now was recuperating from the long walk. My arms hurt, but that was good. It was the good hurting, not the painful hurting from the bruises and the broken bones. However…the fact that mere children were getting to go off on adventures while I had to stay and "recover" irked me. Yeah, my shin was fractured and my wrist was sprained and I still had some bruises and it was still painful to stand up straight, but I wanted to get a move on. I felt like there was something I needed to do…

"Vivian!!" I turned my head to see Green running towards me, looking relieved at having found me. He stopped short of where I was standing and glared at me while he caught his breath.

"I've…been looking….everywhere for you!!" he managed to spit out. I felt sort of bad, as Green was my friend and my caretaker. "What were you thinking?!"

"About how boring it is, sitting inside day after day," I responded truthfully, glaring back at him. "It was only a mile."

"Yeah, but you've been gone for at least three hours!!" he continued to glare, until he finally sighed with defeat and plopped down next to me, staring out at the grassy hills of Pallet Town. "What am I going to do with you….?" He muttered more to himself than me. I realized I had won this battle, and I grinned, and looked up at the clouds floating lazily through the sky.

"You could convince your grandpa to let me go out on my own." I said hopefully, and he snorted.

"Yeah, wonder how far you'll get on crutches." He said sarcastically. "Who knows, you might get to Viridian in three weeks." I puffed my cheeks out angrily, and I folded my arms, glaring at the back of his head.

"Bah. When I'm off the damn crutches, silly."

"You shouldn't curse."

"I'll curse whenever the hell I want."

"No, really. It's not very attractive."

"So?" Green sighed, and shook his head.

"You're hopeless…" I giggled at that, but then we fell back into silence. I heard the cries of Pokémon far away, and I couldn't help but feel a terrible aching in my heart as I heard a Pidgey, closer than the others, calling to other Pidgey.

"Green?"

"Hm?"

"Why is it I always feel so sad when I hear the Pidgey? I don't feel so bad when other Pokémon call to each other…" Green didn't answer me.

"I don't know." He said quietly. "Grandpa won't tell me anything." I sighed, feeling very depressed now.

"Oh well….." I muttered quietly, and we were silent again as we listened to the Pidgey call to each other. The sound of their calls made me want to cry, although for the love of Pete I couldn't remember why. My head didn't hurt anymore, when trying to remember things, but I couldn't remember anything at all. It was….very lonely.

"I can't believe it's already been two months…" Green muttered, and I looked at him.

"What?"

"It's been two months since you came to live with Gramps."

"Really?"

"Yeah….you were in such a bad state…."

"Do you know why I'm so beat up?" Green didn't answer immediately again.

"I do." I grabbed him by his shoulder, and forced him to look at me.

"Tell me. Tell me what happened." I pleaded, and his eyes betrayed that he wanted to tell me, wanted me to know, and he closed his eyes briefly, collecting his thoughts.

"You were at the Indigo Plateau, before the accident," he started quietly, and I listened. "However….some things went badly, and you took off down Mount Silver." He took a rattled breath, and I knew he was leaving things out. "The bike you had taken, you lost control, speeding down the mountain, and you went over a cliff." My eyes widened. How I was still in one piece baffled me. "Granted, you didn't fall very far, only about thirty feet or so before you landed on a grassy cliff face, which sort of broke your fall, but when…they got to you, you were out." Green finished lamely, sort of avoiding your gaze.

"Who's they?" I pried, hoping he would answer.

"You know…the medical people." He shuffled about uneasily, and I knew he was lying.

"Green, you're a terrible liar." I sighed, retreating for now. "Whatever…I'll let you off for now." Green couldn't help but sigh, and I felt a twinge of disappointment.

"I'm sorry….Gramps just says it would be better for you if you remember on your own." He said, and I stared at the grass swaying in the wind in front of us. Pallet Town was peaceful….a little too peaceful.

"Hey Green?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you really talk to your grandpa for me? About going out on my own?"

"I'll think about it."

"Thanks."

* * *

-4 months after the accident-

I still couldn't remember much. I remembered snippets of an island home, a person I feared and hated, Pokémon of my own (Pidgey and another I couldn't place), along with someone else very important to me. He had gold eyes and a kind smile, but I couldn't remember much else. Also, the Sevii Islands struck a nerve every time I heard about them, and every time someone mentioned the Elite Four I shuddered and I felt fear grip my chest as to where I had trouble breathing and I couldn't speak. Oak and Green tried not to speak to me about it. My headaches only came for short periods of time now, and only a few bruises and scars remained of my injuries. It was awesome, being off crutches and away from the boot that now lay unused in a corner.

Since I had started leaving my room (3 months ago) 27 children, aged 13 or younger, had come to ask Oak to start their journey. In all, about 100 people or more had come to Oak. They came from all over, but I couldn't help but be jealous each time one came and they were given a Pokémon without much fuss. Professor Oak still didn't like the idea of my leaving, despite my being better.

"I just can't," he would say helplessly, and I'd go sulk somewhere in the hills until Green came to find me. Green said I came from Almia, a region far away from Kanto, and it confused me, because I stayed up late at night reading books and doing research. Nothing about Almia seemed familiar, and my research said that Pidgey wasn't native to Almia, and I felt a connection to that Pokémon. I recognized the island aspect, but I could hardly remember anything about it other than that I was happy. Green said Alakazam had tried to help me, but very rarely could I get a memory that seemed real to me. But, finally, I convinced Green I was fit to travel by beating him in a foot race over two miles.

As I ate my dinner in my room on May 7, 2008, I listened to the conversation at the end of the hallway. Green was speaking loud enough for me to hear on purpose, and Oak couldn't tell if I was listening or not.

"Gramps, she beat me in a two mile race. I think she's fine."

"That's what _you_ think, but _he_ is still concerned about her state of mind."

"He hasn't come to visit her, has he?" Green challenged.

"That's because it's too painful for him, Green, you know that. She doesn't know who he is. We both decided it would probably be beneficial to her if he didn't come see her. You saw how he reacted to her when she didn't know who he was."

_Who were they talking about…? _

"…I know. But she's restless, Pallet Town is far too quiet for her."

"I know…"

"Then let her go on an adventure! He said she hasn't ever been on one, so it'd be a new experience, and it'd be harder to track her down if she's constantly moving instead of staying in one spot, even if they think she's dead."

_Right, so I am so damn confused right now, it's not even funny._

"I just don't feel comfortable sending Vivian off on an adventure without consulting him first."

_Who the hell is HIM?_

"Like I said, he hasn't even come here to talk to you face to face."

"That's because he's busy with the Leagues separating at last. He is the-"

"Quiet! She could hear you."

_Damn you Green._

"Right, right…I forgot…."

"So what're you going to do?"

"I'll let her go if you promise one thing."

"Sure."

_YES!!_

"You go with her."

…_say whut?_

"Alright, that's fine with me. Although being the Gym Leader that could cause some-"

"Don't give me any crap, young man. You said you'd promise to do it, otherwise I'm not letting her leave."

It was silent for a moment, and I prayed Green would say yes.

"Alright, I promise."

_I love you, Green. You have no idea._

_-------------_

YAY! You like, yes?

You know what to do. :]


	3. Chapter 3

AWESOME POSSUM YO.

HERE IS A SUPER SPECIAL AWESOME UPDATE!!!

:DDDDDD

Be happy. D Or I eat you. Only not.

Thanks to those who reviewed and encouraged me to write more~~ I've had serious writer's block lately. ]; BUUUUUUUT~~~ Hopefully I can get more chapters out sooner and stuff. Or maybe not. Or I will. Who knows.

**My rant: **I know Lance isn't in this one, but you can't rush things. D: Especially when you fall off the side of Mt. Silver and get amnesia. I mean, that's gotta suck. Seriously. No, I'm not going for a love triangle. I can't help it if Green and Vivian find each other attractive, it's called being human, and it happens. No, she's not going to be a dragon trainer. Hell. What Vivian does in this chapter is EXACTLY what I did the first time I picked up Red Version. Minus all the awesome details. And I was like, 8? Maybe? Who knows. It was forever and ever ago. xDD

But seriously, guys, don't expect the whole plot line, loop holes, quirks, twists, all the shenanigans to be revealed in the first chapters. It pisses me off when people are like "HEY. YOU DIDN'T EXPLAIN THIS PLOT ELEMENT EARLY ON SO THEREFORE THIS FICTION SUCKS BRAAAAWRRRRGHHH."

No.

It's called good story telling. You don't find out that Gollum ends up destroying the ring in the first five minutes of reading/watching the Lord of the Rings do you? If you did, it wouldn't be a good story. D: (I used LOTR cuz supposedly everyone knows what it is)

-sighs- Okie. I had my rant. I just needed to vent that, cuz some things people say just piss me off. Mostly cuz it's ignorance, or jealousy. Who knows. Who gives a shit. :D I sure don't. I stopped caring a while ago.

ANNNNNNYWAY.

WE HAVE A STORY HERE!!! GET TO IT!

:DDDDDDDDDDDDDD I love you all. ^-^o

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own Pokemon. Sadly. ;-;

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"Haha!! I'm excited!!" I squealed, mostly to myself. I was in my room, which was now essentially bare, my back pack waiting to be zipped up on the table. I was wearing Sambas, which were amazing (and brand new; Green had bought them for me), a pair of black soccer shorts with a green tank top that showed my black sports bra. I didn't care though; it was nice enough outside, being a constant 75 degrees Fahrenheit or so. I had about four different tops, pants, and under garments all shoved into my back pack, along with toiletries. A North Face sleeping bag was shoved tightly into its bag, which was tied to said back pack. I had a First Aid kit, a really small pillow, a coat and boots for when the weather got bad…

I was set.

I double checked everything three times, zipped the bag up, slung it on my shoulders, and almost made it out of the room before I staggered over the weight of my bag.

"Geezum…" I breathed, standing up straight, breathing in and out slowly as a I readjusted the bag so it lay more comfortably on my shoulders. "This is HEAVY…" and it was just going to get heavier, my mind moaned at me. But my determination beat my logic down with it's iron fist of hope (hehe, witty, only not) and I stood up, heaved a big sigh, and made it out the door, ignoring the pain accumulating in my lower back. I made it downstairs without tripping, and I dumped the bag on the sofa in the lounge and headed into the professor's lab, where Green and the professor were waiting for me.

Compared to the recent months I had been here, the lab was quite clean. Nothing was out of place, the wind was blowing gently outside without any window shuddering, no beer cans were to be seen…it was nice. The professor looked pretty normal (as normal as crazy old smart people get), and Green looked…damn.

He looked _fine_, for lack of a better word. He was wearing a semi loose black t-shirt, with khaki pants. His shirt was halfly tucked in; his belt was visible in the front only not in the back, and he was wearing black, travel worn shoes, and I couldn't tell what kind of shoes they were. He just looked like that "I'm cool because I really don't care what you think" kid, only he was twenty, so I'm not sure how that works…but hey. It did. He also had a back pack, which looked ridiculously old, and rather light, and he had only three Poke balls attached to his belt.

"So Vivian! Are you ready?" Green asked as I walked in, grinning like an idiot.

"I was born ready." I said, and I looked at Oak, who sighed, and turned to the table that had three Poke balls on it. I felt my heart swell as I looked at them; one of them was going to be my first Pokémon.

"So…have you decided which one you want?" Oak asked me, glancing at Green, who had told me just about everything I needed to know and more about Pokémon.

"Yes." I said, feeling as if this was some sort of grand moment.

"Well then, don't mind me, Green will have you taken care of," the professor said, turning back to his desk and he began to rummage through some paperwork, grumbling to himself. I felt highly let down by the professor, but Green patted my shoulder and walked over to the table.

"You liked Charmander, right?" he asked, and I nodded, forgetting about the grumpy old man.

"O-kay then…" he picked the Poke ball in the middle and tossed it to me, which I barely caught. "Open it; meet your first Pokémon." Green had a slight smile on his face, as if he was recollecting his own first meeting. I pressed the button in the middle and the ball flashed open, the light going to the ground to reveal a large lizard standing on it's hind legs, a bright flame burning on it's tail with big, green eyes.

"Char char!!" it said happily, not even coming up to my knees. I blinked at it before resisting the urge to squeal loudly. It looked up at me, narrowed its eyes, and sniffed my outstretched hand. I looked at Green as it did so, and he just shrugged. _Thanks Green._ I thought sarcastically as I looked back down at the over sized lizard, who was presently picking at my hand with it's tiny claws.

It was inspecting me.

After a few moments of tense silence as the Charmander sniffed me out, it stood in front of me and looked me straight in the eyes. Then it grinned and shook my hand.

"Char char Charmander!!" it said happily, and I took that as it had OK'd me, so I shook it's claw or hand or whatever back and smiled at it.

"Hey there buddy!" I said happily, "We're partners now. Let's do this!" And Charmander nodded its head, hopping up and down.

This was probably the happiest moment in my life that I could remember.

I looked at Green, who was smiling at me.

"What?" I asked, knowing my grin probably couldn't get any bigger.

"Just reminiscing is all." He said before chucking something at me, which hit me in the collar bone, but I managed to catch it as it fell.

"Ow!!" I whined, rubbing my collar bone as I glared at him before looking at the red object in my hand.

"It's a Pokedex." Green said, looking back at the table and grabbing a few more things (probably to throw at me). "It's not hard to use, so if you can't figure it out I reserve the right to call you a retard until the day you die." I stared at him.

"Really?"

"Really."

I wanted to throw something at him.

Anyway.

"And here…" he actually came over and held out five tiny Poke balls for me to take, "Here we have five empty Poke balls to get you started." I took the small objects and examined the shiny round objects in my hand before Green pulled a small, brightly wrapped package out from behind his back. "Open it." He demanded, shoving it at me. I took it from him and stuck my tongue out at him before turning to the side to begin tearing the paper apart.

"NO WAY." I breathed, after successfully destroying the box and the paper to reveal the goodies inside. "No freaking way. This is awesome."

"The Poke nav is from Gramps. The iPod is my own contribution." I looked at Green, eyes shining, feeling like I was about to explode from all the good feelings inside. He had a slight pink tinge on his cheeks as he waited for me to do something.

"I LOVE YOU PEOPLE." I said loudly before grabbing Green and hugging the crap out of the poor guy. "You are amazing Green. You are one of my bestest friends ever."

"I'm also your only friend."

"That can change, you know."

"Sure it can."

"You think I'm incapable of making friends?"

"Who would want to be friends with you?"

"Apparently you."

"I'm friends with you because you live with me." I opened my mouth to respond only to find none. Green smirked and flicked my nose. "I win; again." I just stuck my tongue out at him before shoving the iPod and it's headphones in my pocket; I'd have to find a computer to download lots of illegally downloaded music onto it. I then examined the Poke nav; it was forest green with white, and I flipped it open. I played with it for a few seconds; I already had two numbers in it, Green's and the Professor's, although I'd rather call Green then the grumpy old man. I snapped it shut and took the cord attached to it and slung it over my neck, and I squealed happily before hugging Green again. I smiled happily at Charmander, and I considered hugging Oak.

"Thanks professor!! For everything." I said sincerely, bowing slightly. The professor grunted in response, caught up in whatever he was doing. I sighed and shrugged at Green, who waved it off and motioned for me to follow him into the lounge. I glanced at Charmander, who nodded and walked beside me as I walked after Green into the lounge.

"Grab your gear and let's go." Green said, heading for the door. I just nodded, feeling excitement course through every single nerve in my body. I grabbed the extremely heavy back pack, slung it over my shoulders, and followed Green out the front door, holding onto the bag's straps with both hands and Charmander walking beside me. We walked down the road from Oak's place to the main road heading to Viridian City.

I tried to ignore the pain growing as I carried the two ton back pack.

"I'm going to leave you in Viridian City." Green said suddenly, looking straight ahead. "I don't want to babysit you for your whole journey, and I know you wouldn't like that anyway. Besides, I'm a gym leader. I have responsibilities to think about. And if Gramps finds out and bitches to me about it, well…." He grinned at me. "Not much I can do if I don't know where you are, right?" I looked at him and smiled.

"You are seriously the best friend I am ever going to have."

----

_OR IS HE??_

_FIND OUT IN THE NEXT ACTION PACKED CHAPTER!! _

_Action packed. Sure._

_I'm on sugar right now. Teehee. 3_

_Do what y'all do best. :D_

_3_


	4. Chapter 4

HELLO ALL! Thank you for reading!!!!! :DDDDDD

Thank you kindly to everyone who reviewed and faved and whatnot. :DD It makes me happy to see my work is appreciated. ^-^

So, I have here a rather long chapter with finally the Dragon Tamer making his appearance in a rather non dramatic way. :D

So, have at it, fans.

I did my best, I pray you enjoy. :3

* * *

"So….what do you have in that thing again?" Green asked, smirking as I struggled to keep the back pack on my shoulders. I exhaled sharply and glared at him.

"Everything I'll need to survive on for the journey." I breathed, thinking about what exactly was in the bag. I wondered suddenly if there was a way for me to store said stuff somewhere…probably not, but it was worth a try.

"Probably not everything you'll need," Green said, chuckling as I barely matched his easy strides, "But for now, yes, everything you'll need."

"How much farther?" I groaned, the lovely 75 degrees feeling like 100 as I trudged along the dirt path. I can run and play soccer in this weather; I've never gone back packing. Even with the memory loss, I could feel it in my arms that I had never been pack backing. Muscles don't lie.

"Stop whining." Green nudged me slightly, causing me to topple over in the dirt. I heard him bite back his laughter as I stood back up, fuming. He was covering his mouth, amusement glittering in his eyes like evil seeds of death as I glared at him.

"You're a jerk." I muttered, ignoring the dirt on my arms and legs as we continued walking.

"I know."

"Do it again and-"

"And you'll what? Kill me?"

"Something like that."

"Empty threats Vivian. Empty."

"That's what you think."

"It's what I know."

"For all you know I could be plotting evilly and one day, when you're least expecting it, BAM! Right in the kisser." Green just laughed and stuck his hands in his pockets. I felt the heat rise in my face as I glared at him. It wasn't fair that he was cute and confident and an egotistical-

"Look Vivian. It wasn't that horrible, was it?" he said, pointing ahead, breaking my line of thought and I turned my neck to look at the small city of Viridian.

"Damn its small."

"I apologize."

"I was just saying."

Green decided for once to keep his mouth shut as I looked out over the city of Viridian. There were a few office buildings, mostly homes, a rather large building I assumed to be a gym, and I could see a Pokémon center and a Poke mart from here. I guess it was called a city because "Viridian Town" just didn't sound right. There were also lots of small businesses, and a radio tower kind of off to the side of the city. The hill we were on wasn't very high, but I could see a mass of trees farther off in the distance, and an old brick road heading off to the east before it was swallowed up by foliage.

"That brick road leads to the Indigo Plateau." Green said, noticing my gaze. "And that mass of trees in the distance is Viridian Forest. I'll drop you off at the Pokémon center, and you can have fun from there."

"You're one of the most amazing people ever."

"I know." He said, smirking, and I could feel his ego rising to my side…

"You're so full of yourself."

"I have every right to be." He said, faking the surprise in my chastisement of him. "I _am_ the most powerful Gym leader in the Kanto region, and-" he stopped himself by coughing. "And I have not been defeated in quite some time, so there." I looked at him. He had stopped saying something.

"What were you going to say?"

"Nothing…?" I stuck my lower lip out.

"Yes you were."

"Was not, I said what I wanted to say."

"Sure you did."

"Well, you'll never know, will you?" I snorted and returned my gaze to the path that kept becoming shorter and shorter as we neared the city.

"Bah. Keep your secrets."

"You're crazy."

"Indeed." I agreed. One would think that, being completely clueless about my past other than what I had been told by Oak and Green, that I would want to go see if what they said about me was true or not. I could've gone to Almia and checked if I had lived there, and why would I of been at the Indigo Plateau the day of my accident? It was all confusing and didn't make any sense to me, but I did know why thinking of Pidgey made me sad and I didn't even want to go near them. They were the cutest most adorable birds in the world, but…they tugged at my heart like nothing else would. Pidgey was one of my only links to my memories so far, but I didn't want to go near them. They made me cry.

And as a result, I had deemed myself crazy for wanting to go on an adventure in some place that supposedly wasn't home. I had badgered and badgered the professor about my parents. Where were they? Had they asked about me? I bothered him until finally one day he snapped and yelled that I didn't have any parents, and because I couldn't remember them, it didn't bother me as much as it should have I guess. It made me sad…but I had Green, so everything was good. So long as Green was with me-

"And this is where I leave you." Green said, sighing, and I blinked. I had known this was coming, but I hadn't known it was coming at the same time.

"Wait what?" I asked, blinking again at the brown haired young man. Green sighed and looked at me. We were standing in front of the Pokémon center, and I felt my stomach drop. No…Green couldn't leave…Green was always with me. He looked out for me, he was nice, funny, sometimes mean, but…

"I can't go with you." He said quietly, hands in his pockets, looking at me as if he understood exactly what was going on in my mind. "I'm only a phone call away, if you need anything."

"But…what will I do-" I didn't want to ask what I'd do without him, so I bit my lip instead, grip tightening around the backpack straps as my gaze went to my feet. Green sighed.

"You'll figure it out. Just keep walking, one step at a time. If you fall, get back up again." He took a step closer and put his hand on my shoulder, and I looked up at him, and without realizing it felt the heat rise in my face as he was looking at me with a look that made my stomach flutter. "You've already taken a hard fall, and you've proven that you can get back up stronger then you were when you fell. I think you'll make it."

"What if I don't?" I asked quietly, for the first time realizing that failure might be part of this equation.

"Then I'll whip _your _ass into shape so you can get back in shape to go kick _someone else's_ ass." I stifled a laugh; Green could always make me laugh, the jerk. "I'm not going to let you fail. Every time you fall, I will be there if you want me to be." I smiled at Green, feeling a wonderful feeling swell up inside my chest.

"I'd like that." I said, carefully choosing those words. Green laughed.

"I thought you might." He leaned in and touched foreheads with me. "Now, go get them. I'll be waiting for you when you have seven badges." He leaned away and hugged me, and I barely had time to react before he let go and began walking away. I was stunned for a moment.

"HEY!" I ran at him and he turned in time for me to hug him tightly around the middle. He seemed surprised at first, but then hugged me back. "Thanks for everything Green." I bit back the choke growing in my throat. "It really…means a lot." He laughed softly and patted my head gently.

"Well, someone had to look after you." I looked up at him, and he had that same look on his face that made my stomach flutter uncontrollably. "Now let me go; I haven't been to the gym since I started looking after you, and I need to get back. I'm sure there are a few trainers waiting to challenge me." I pouted.

"Fine." I let him go and he ruffled my hair before I batted away his hand.

"See you later." He said, grinning, walking away again.

"See you later!" I called as he walked away. I watched him walk away for a little while before I decided to head into the Pokémon center to see how to deal with my extreme luggage. I did feel sad about Green leaving, to be sure, but I could always call him. And I wouldn't be alone; I had Charmander to keep me company now. I entered the lobby and headed straight to the counter to consult the rather bored looking nurse.

"Hiya!" I said grinning, and the pink haired nurse yawned.

"Welcome to our Pokémon center. May I heal your Pokémon for you?" her voice was monotone, as if she had done this a million times. Which she probably had, but that wasn't the point.

"No, actually. I want to know if I can store stuff in the P.C. like I can Pokémon." I said. She blinked, her attention piqued.

"Maybe? Go try it out; the computer is right there." Which it was, it was right there on the edge of the counter. I shuffled over to the flat screen computer and opened up the menu, and stared at it.

"Do I need to register for something?" I asked the nurse, and she blinked again.

"You're a newbie I believe?" I nodded. She sighed and motioned for me to follow her. "Alright, let's get you registered and whatnot. Takes about five minutes." I followed her and she had her own computer behind the counter. She clicked a few things on it and then looked at me.

"Do you have a Pokedex, by chance?"

"I do-"

"I need it, please." I pulled the Pokedex out of my pocket and handed it to her. She flipped it open and pressed a few buttons on it, and did a few things on the computer, waited, and then handed it back to me. "Congratulations, you are now registered as an official Pokémon trainer. Just go over to the computer and have it scan your Pokedex, and then you can access your account." I smiled.

"Thank you kindly."

"No problem." She said, resuming her position at the desk as I made my way over to the lonely computer. I logged on, a feeling of excitement bubbling in my chest as I did so. I opened up my account, and noticed there was another account that was there as well.

"Who's Bill….?" I wondered quietly, and clicked on it, only to find it was a Pokémon storage system. Well, if they could store Pokémon…

I logged off of Bill's account and onto mine, and found the item storage. I emptied contents of my bag that I felt I wouldn't need for some time, and set them on the strange machine next to the computer. I hit the "load" button, and my items began glowing, and then vanished. I blinked, confused, and then saw that they had somehow been loaded into the computer system. I tried wrapping my head around this science, but decided it was too complicated and let it be.

I bade farewell to the nurse and then left the building, breathing in the air, and trying not to notice the silence of not having Green. I felt the lightness of my backpack excitedly, almost half of my items in the computer, and I gingerly felt the lone Poke ball on my belt. I decided I needed to suck it up and learn how to be by myself for a little while, so I left Charmander in his ball before I decided which way to go. I decided to head towards Pewter City, so I followed the rather worn main street towards the edge of the city. I could see the top of the gym as I walked, and I vaguely wondered about it. What kind of Pokémon did Green have, I wonder…

"HEY YOU!" I stopped dead, hearing someone yell at me. I looked to my side to see a man stomping towards me, his face slightly red with anger. "GET OFF MY LAWN!!"

"But this is the road-"

"GET OFF!!" he screamed, and I turned and fled back into the city. He didn't follow me, so I breathed heavily, catching my breath, and a young woman came up to me.

"I apologize…he hasn't had coffee yet today. Why don't you look around and come back in an hour or so? He'll probably of had it by then." She said apologetically, and I was so shaken I just nodded and sort of ran off to the old brick road and followed it for a while.

The road was _really_ old, with bricks missing here and there and grass growing in between many of the bricks. I walked along it, hearing nothing but the distant cries of Pokémon as I did so. Eventually, I came upon a field, and I sighed. There was surely wild Pokémon in there, and to be honest, I sort of didn't want to deal with them. But I walked into the field, the grass tickling my legs. Mountains rose not too far away, but there was a large patch of grass at the foot of the hill, where the brick path lay in ruin around an a small pond that shimmered brilliantly in the noon sunlight. Tall trees stood far away, and in the distance was a small, worn down, one story building. Excited, I ran down the hill, which was probably not a good idea. I tripped, and rolled all the way to the bottom where I crashed into something.

"Ow…" I muttered, rubbing my head where I had hit the something, and opened my eyes to a rather fierce looking little sparrow that looked like it was ready to kill me.

"Spearow!!!" it cawed defiantly, only flapping one wing at me in anger. It's other wing looked injured, and I assumed, with a pang of guilt, that it was my fault for injuring it. "Spearow Speeaaarow!!!" it cawed, rushing at me, poised to strike.

"AIYA! CHARMANDER!!" I yelled, fumbling with my belt before finally managing to release Charmander who promptly tackled the little bird, allowing me time to stand up and grab my Pokedex to see what type of Pokémon it was.

"Spearow…" I pondered over what to do before Charmander yelled out in pain, and my attention was returned to the battle. The Spearow was relentlessly attacking Charmander, who was doing his best to defend himself.

"Charmander, Ember!!" I yelled, and Charmander unleashed his fiery breath upon the bird, who staggered back, dazed and badly burned. It shook itself, and looked ready to charge again before I threw a Poke ball at it, hoping to subdue the violent bird. The light flashed, and Spearow was drawn into the ball, and it violently shook on the ground. For several minutes Charmander and I waited with bated breath, until finally, the ball stopped moving, and I yelled out in triumph.

"AHA! I caught a Spearow!!" I yelled happily, scooping the ball up. I decided it would be better to release Spearow from its ball once it had been healed, and I returned Charmander before continuing on my way, feeling very proud of myself. I had caught my first Pokémon, and I was excited about that.

I passed by the small pond, seeing a small aquatic Pokémon fleeing from under the surface as I drew near, and pursed my lips at being unable to catch a Water type. I continued on until I came to the building, where it looked like they were getting ready to begin construction. Actually, as soon I came near, I heard a low rumbling, and suddenly, the building collapsed in front of my eyes. I stood there, in shock for a second, as I saw a large, snake like rock Pokémon rise from the rubble, shaking its head. The Pokedex called this Pokémon Onix, and I just stood there, in awe.

"Excuse me, ma'am, but right now the way to the Pokémon League is closed…due to obvious reasons." A man in a hard hat came up to me, and I looked at him. He looked normal; he was wearing a short sleeve shirt, long pants, boots, and had a tool belt around his waist.

"Oh." I was still in shock, almost. "Well…I was just wandering around anyway…"

"Chris, get over here!" someone yelled at the man I was talking to, and he flinched, tipped his hat in an apology before running off to the voice.

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience." A deep voice from behind me startled me more than the building being demolished had. "But the Pokémon League challenge is closed for the time being."

"Oh no that's fine-" I turned around to face a young man, and an extremely attractive young man. His hair was dark red, looking as if it was wind blown, and it stuck up with the ends all sort of falling to the right, with bangs falling barely over his left eye, but the look suited him. His eyes were like liquid gold, but they held a steely coldness in them that made my skin almost crawl. Almost. He looked intimidating, but somehow I wasn't exactly afraid of him. Just…wary. He was wearing a turtleneck, with long sleeves, and he had a belt on that had six Poke balls on it. His turtleneck was dark blue, and it looked like a heavy weather coat more than anything. It had orange strips coming over the shoulders and all the way down to where the shirt ended, and there was an orange stripe down the middle as well. The edges of his sleeves had jagged orange lines on the cuffs, and on the side where the sleeve ended the shirt turned black. He was wearing long pants similar to his turtleneck, and his belt was black. His pants were tucked into black boots, but his clothing wasn't skin tight, so it looked good. He also had a pocket on his turtleneck, and he had regular pockets on his pants. The boots had two orange rings around the top, and he had a cape. The interior of the cape was deep red, and it looked expensive. The cuff of the cape came up to his cheeks, giving him a vampiric look, and the exterior of the cape was black. It was held in place with silver clasps.

Anyone else dressed like this would've been defined as a freak. But this guy? Hot damn, he was something else. I was so distracted looking him over that he blinked once, and sort of turned his head to the side to look at me.

"Are you alright?" he asked, and his voice…was _sexy_. This young man had sexy oozing out of every vein in his body, and it took a moment for my mind to snap back to reality before I smiled nervously at him.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine, actually…just a little frazzled, is all."

"Frazzled?"

"It's not every day you see a building demolished in front of your eyes." The man's lips twitched in something that was reminiscent of a smile. While he was being polite, I felt like he wasn't very nice very often…which was really too bad, seeing as how sexy he was.

"True, but is it just the building?"

"…what else would it be….?"

"Do you know who I am?"

"Am I supposed to?" At this, the man's eyes held several different emotions that I couldn't read.

"Most people know who I am. You must be new to Kanto?"

"I am, actually. I arrived here from Almia not too long ago." I said, hoping I wasn't lying.

"Almia?" he sounded interested. "They don't have Trainers there."

"Nope…which is why I'm here!" I said nervously, and his eyes didn't move from mine, and I was beginning to feel a little uneasy.

"I assume you have come from Pallet Town then?"

"Yes sir."

"No need to call me sir. I'm probably not that much older than you."

"But you're still probably older than me."

"Well how old are you?"

"16."

"I'm 19." HOLY SON A OF A SANDWICH NO WAI D:

"Yeah right."

"No, really, I am." He sounded sincere, but I still had my doubts. But hey, he was closer in age, so what the heck.

"Yeah, ok." I said, shrugging, and I looked at him. He hadn't moved. "So why are you here, if they're doing construction?"

"I'm in charge of it."

"….who are you?"

"I am Lance, of the Dragon Tamer clan from Blackthorn City." He said, making a sweeping bow, using his cape to its full extent in a dramatic swishing motion. He stood back up, hand extended for me to take.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Vivian Atwood, from Almia." I took his hand, hoping to God it wasn't sweaty. He bowed and brought my hand close to his face as though to kiss it, but didn't, all the while keeping his eyes locked with mine.

"A pleasure to meet you." I felt the heat rise in my face as though I had just been thrown into a furnace. He straightened back up and released my hand. "Now, you must be a rookie?"

"Yeah…" I glanced away, kicking at the grass at my feet as I did so.

"Why are you here and not lost in Viridian Forest?" he joked, and I looked at him, pursing my lips. A faint smile was gracing his features, and his eyes had lost a good deal of the steely coldness, replaced with a much nicer, warmer look.

"Because there was a scary man screaming at me to get off his lawn." I said quietly, "So I ran, and some lady said that he hadn't had his coffee yet, so I decided to wander around." Lance nodded knowingly, sighing.

"That man always wants his coffee…" he muttered. "if you're lucky when you pass by he might teach you how to catch a Pokémon." I must've looked extremely put out because then he said "What's wrong?"

"But….I already know how to catch Pokémon….I caught one not too long ago…" I muttered, taking Spearow's Poke ball off of my belt and staring at it glumly as though expecting it to do something. Lance seemed interested.

"What kind of Pokémon did you catch?" he said, eyeing the Poke ball.

"A violent Spearow."

"All Spearow are violent."

"Maybe so, but see, I rolled down that hill on accident-"I pointed at the hill behind us, "and accidentally hit it, making it angry. Charmander held it at bay, but its hurt pretty bad now…." I looked at the ball sadly, suddenly feeling sorry for hurting Spearow so badly. Then I noticed that Lance was rustling in one of his pockets for something, and pulled out a spray bottle.

"Could I see it?" he asked, and when I looked at him, questioning his motives, he held the spray bottle up and shook it. "It's a Full Restore. It'll automatically heal your Spearow."

"Ok." I released Spearow, and kneeled down beside the rather tiny bird. It looked completely dazed, with burn marks all over its wings.

"Spear…." It coughed out, and I scooped it up into my arms, my heart going out to the fierce little bird. Lance walked over and sprayed the contents of the bottle on Spearow, who flinched, but relaxed as the burn marks went away. It cawed softly before nestling up closer to me.

"That should do it." Lance said triumphantly, returning the Full Restore to his pocket.

"Aww….it's so cute!!" I exclaimed, hugging the bird tighter to me. Indeed, I thought it was adorable now that it wasn't attacking me in an angry rage.

"It's probably a she." Lance concluded, and I looked at him confused. "You can usually tell by how affectionate they are." He said, shrugging. "That and most Spearow are usually terribly indifferent towards their trainers at first." Spearow finally seemed to notice Lance, and squawked in fear before scratching itself out of my grip and plopping on the ground in front of me before running around to hide behind my legs.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked, worried as the little bird continued to hide behind my legs.

"She's probably just timid." Lance said, cocking his head in amusement as Spearow hid behind my legs.

"Ow…" I suddenly realized that Spearow had scratched me pretty good, but didn't draw any blood.

"Are you alright?" Lance asked, suddenly worried. It seemed as though he was about to reach out and touch my arm, but then he messed with his cloak. I must've imagined it.

"Oh yeah I'm fine." I lied, ignoring the stinging pain in my arms. "Spearow, return!" I recalled Spearow, and looked at Lance.

"So um….I guess I should be going now…." I said, not wanting to hurt his feelings or anything.

"Are you headed for Pewter, then?" he asked, and I nodded. "If you don't mind, could I accompany you? I was about to leave anyway, and I need to go to Pewter's museum to pick up an item of mine." I blinked.

"S-sure!" I felt excitement well up inside me. I hoped I didn't sound too excited. Lance smiled for the first time since I met him, and it made me blush.

"Well then, let us be on our way."

-----

So y'all know what to do, yes? :D

Also, I know "vampiric" isn't a word, yet at the same time it is. If you have a question as to what it means, "like a vampire". Only not. _; Yeah I know. Confusing.

:D


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN POKEMON!**

**Thank you everyone who has reviewed and who has waited patiently for an update! I know it's been a long time, but hey, sh*t happens. Especially to me. ._. I haven't forgotten the story, and I'm going to continue it and make it awesome. So here is your much awaited update!**

* * *

It was quiet between Lance and I as we walked. We walked back to Viridian, and we actually made it out of the city towards Viridian Forest without encountering anyone. The cries of Pokémon were off in the distance, and the road we were walking on was very worn down, with parts of the pavement completely missing in some areas. After about half an hour of our not speaking, I decided to break the silence.

"It's a nice day." I said somewhat loudly, looking up at the clouds floating lazily in the sky.

"Indeed it is." Lance responded, and he sighed, sticking his hands in his pockets. I looked at him, and he was staring straight ahead, his eyes clouded over.

"Is something wrong?" I asked tentatively, and his expression fell slightly.

"I recently lost a good friend-" he stopped himself, "Augh, saying that they were a "good friend" would be dishonoring her memory…" he sighed, "She was closer to me than any family member could ever have been. And…now she is lost." I blinked a few times.

"What do you mean by 'lost'?" I paused, "Unless of course you don't want to talk about it…" I added quickly, remembering I had met him less than an hour ago. Lance shrugged.

"She's lost. I can't find her." He said, no sadness being revealed in his voice, no anguish showing in his eyes. "But I will find her again."

Dammit. He was taken.

"Well…at least you have something to look for and something to keep you going." I said, trying to be nice.

"True." And it fell silent again. He may be hot, but he wasn't much for conversation. I sighed, ruefully, as I thought about this mystery girl that had him captivated. I looked back at him, how he carried himself, how his eyes held a will of steel in them, and how he looked like one bad ass mother f*****. He looked like the kind of guy who would kick someone's ass and not give a second thought to it. So whoever it was that he was looking for had to be someone amazing, to keep stride with _this_ guy. I also felt that I shouldn't pry any further; it wasn't polite.

"I have never been to Almia…" Lance said quietly, and I felt my chest tighten. "What is it like?"

"Well…." I didn't know what to do. Oh no oh no oh nooooo…..! "Could I tell you something?"

"Of course."

"I don't remember."

"What do you mean?" Lance looked at me, curious. I smiled nervously.

"Truth be told, up until a few months ago…I don't really remember anything." Lance's facial expression didn't change.

"Why is that?" his tone changed; it was friendlier then before.

"I had an accident…" I sighed. "I broke my left leg, fractured more than five bones…had a horrible concussion, and now have amnesia. I can't remember anything before five months ago. Well…I remember a few things, but they're broken and mismatched memories that don't make much sense. And-" I stopped myself, looking at Lance, who was still looking at me. I blinked a few times, felt myself turn red, and then I looked away. "I don't know why I told you all that. Shit."

"What's wrong?"

"I…I don't even know you and I told you all that stuff-"

"Vivian…" Lance sighed. "Don't worry. Your secret will be safe with me." I looked at him, my face still red. "I promise. You can trust me." I frowned.

"How do I know that?" Lance half smiled at me.

"I am a Dragon Tamer. Keeping secrets is something we do best. Trust me for that reason, if nothing else."

"Alright….well if you tell anyone, I'm going to hit you." Lance actually laughed at that.

"You can try, my dear. You can try." He said, glancing at me. I raised an eyebrow and returned the look.

"Oh don't worry, I will." We laughed a little bit at that and as we continued walking we fell into silence again.

"Do you know what the gym types are?" Lance asked suddenly.

"My friend Green told me the first gym is a rock type." I said thoughtfully, thinking about it. "Green taught me EVERYTHING he knows (or supposedly so is what he told me but it's hard to tell when he's lying) and I know they're weak against grass and water types, but I haven't got either…."

"You can always catch a Caterpie in the forest and evolve it to a Butterfree, bug Pokemon evolve quickly. If you don't have a grass or water type, I assume you chose Charmander?"

"I did indeed." I said proudly, thinking fondly of my fire breathing lizard.

"Charmander can learn Steel Claw, rock types are also especially weak against steel type attacks." Lance said, and I looked at him.

"Oh really now…?"

"Yes ma'am."

"I might have to consider that tactic."

"That's what I would do." Lance shrugged it off like it was nothing, and I just looked at him. Who was this guy? Obviously he was pretty important for being in charge of the construction of the new Pokemon League or whatever, so couldn't he just Fly to Pewter? Maybe he enjoyed walking. Maybe he was lonely. I don't know why I was complaining, I was having a good time talking to him and it was nice not having Green's ego being thrown in my face every five minutes.

As we continued walking, the sun went lower in the sky and our shadows grew longer as we continued to walk.

"We're getting closer." Lance said, and I looked at him. His golden eyes were shining, illuminating his face in the setting sun.

"You mean we're not there yet?" I groaned, looking around. I saw nothing but trees.

"Not quite. There's a rest house up here for trainers, as going through the forest will take at least three days." Lance said, a little yellow sparkly appearing by his face as he stroked his chin knowingly. I half glared at him.

"Are you serious?" I moaned, my shoulders slumping at the idea of having the spend three days in a bug infested, extremely humid, dark and dangerous forest.

"I am very serious." He said quietly, moving slightly closer to me as we walked. "Just think of all the Beedrill and Weedle we'll find." I shivered involuntarily.

"Ugh….how exciting" I muttered. Lance clapped me on the shoulder, and I looked at him to be a mere foot away from his bright, golden eyes.

"Oh don't worry, it will be." He said knowingly. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, but I felt my face burn at how he had said it and how close he was. I pushed his hand off my shoulder and determinedly stared at the road ahead and started walking faster.

"The sooner we get to that rest house, the better." I announced.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

We arrived at the rest house just as it was getting really dark outside (thank goodness) and Lance and I figured it'd be cheaper to rent a double room rather then get separate rooms.

"You're just starting out, you need all the money breaks you can get." Was Lance's argument as he paid for the room. "And I don't want to pay for two rooms. Shut up and deal with it." I didn't really have much choice in the matter. So we went upstairs to our shared room, I grabbed the bed closet to the bathroom and jumped in the shower first. I changed into shorts and a t shirt and did my best to dry my hair with the towel. I left the bathroom and went to sit on my bed, my hair falling down past my shoulders and Lance strode past me, locking the door to the bathroom after he closed the door.

I sat on my bed, my two Pokeballs sitting on the bedside table next to my bed, while I played with my Pokedex and Pokenav. Not a whole lot to do with no one to talk to. After about twenty minutes Lance came out of the bathroom, wearing a loose, dark red tank top and black pants. The guy had a color scheme; I liked it. I took the opportunity as he walked by to check out how toned his arms were.

_DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN._ my thoughts EXACTLY.

"Like what you see?" Lance suddenly asked, and I felt my face turn bright red as I realized he had caught me staring.

_AW FU-_

"You pull off the red and black really well." I covered, still feeling the burn in my face. Lance looked rather amused, as if he didn't quite believe what I was saying, but I guess he let me slide.

"Why thank you. It's good to know the ladies appreciate my color choice." He said, taking a slight bow. I laughed a little at that, but then started yawning mid laugh.

"I thiiiiiiiiink," as I yawned some more, "it's about time for bed…"

"Really? It's only 9 pm." Lance scoffed, sitting down on his bed.

"I've had a pretty big day." I started, looking at him. "I got my first two Pokemon, I got the shit scared out of me a few times…"

"Sounds like a really tough day." Lance said, false understanding in his voice. I glared at him.

"Woah now bro,"

"Woah, suddenly I'm a bro?"

"Bro. Chill."

"I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"Listen, _bro_." I was trying so hard to not laugh at Lance's face. He couldn't believe I just pulled the bro card on him. "It's been a big day."

"What am I going to do with you if you think _today_ was a big day?" Lance groaned, shaking his head. I thought for a moment.

"Well…..you can protect me from huge bugs and at night you can make sure nothing eats me." I said, thinking about it. Lance raised an eyebrow at me. "You never know! There could be a giant human eating bug out there." After another moment of silence, I finally broke down a little. "Alright I'm kind of freaked out by the dark. I don't like it."

"You're scared of the dark."

"Don't make fun of me."

"I'm not. I just….find that interesting."

* * *

**LANCE'S POV**

"Interesting?" Vivian couldn't believe I thought it was interesting that she was afraid of the dark.

"Not many people can man up or admit to such a fear. Even to someone they trust completely. Yet here you are, having just met me today, " I cringed at that, I'd known the girl my whole life, "and you're telling me you're scared of the dark." Vivian blushed again, and I couldn't help but smirk a little. She rolled over, putting her Pokedex and Pokenav away, looking away from me.

"I just seem to open up to you, don't I?" she asked, and I didn't answer. "Well, it's time for bed. Good night." She reached to turn off her bedside lamp, and shuffled under her covers. I gazed at her for a moment before doing the same thing.

"Good night Vivian. Sweet dreams." I said quietly, closing my eyes, thinking back to a time where we really could tell each other anything…

* * *

_I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a review/message please! :)_


	6. Chapter 6

Yeah so I've come across this problem where I'm going through my notes, trying to organize it all nice and neat so that my "The Past is the Past and the Future is Right Now" notes and my "As Fate Would Have It" notes are separated, I'm finding that in my great brilliance I wrote the notes on the same sheets of paper. ASYUG(O&S^DIHSDHKLA. Makes my life a little harder. But, because I'm determined to keep these stories going, we (as in myself) are going to push ahead and sort it out. Cuz I love y'all. Your reviews make me smile. : )

Also, this story is a little short cuz I started editing/writing it way earlier today but then got sidetracked because I discovered Avatar: The Abridged Series which if you like Avatar: Last Airbender you should totally watch it. Zuko's whiny voice and Sakka's lines make it worthwhile. I promise. But because of that it's a little short, just under 3,000 words (I try to go for 5,000 + ) but I REALLYWANTEDTOUPDATESOHEREIT IS.

Now for a not so pretty picture as we start CHAPTER 6! (two updates in less than two weeks after a 2 year hiatus? This is madness!)

No…this…IS…*dramatic drum roll*

~**story start**~

* * *

"_Lance!" The sound of her voice made me smile as she ran out of her house to meet me. Her dark brown hair was down and usually gray eyes were bright as she ran into me full force, nearly knocking me back. Her death grip tightened as she hugged me, and I hugged her back, laughing gently as I did so. She smelt of the island she lived on, with traces of flowers I was unfamiliar with. She leaned back from the hug to look up at me, and a smile still managed to grace my features as I looked at her. She was more radiant each time I came to visit._

"_I'm SO happy you're here!" she said, "I can't WAIT for you to meet my new Pokemon!" I turned my head slightly at this._

"_So you've caught your own Pokemon now, do you?" I knew she could hardly contain her excitement already so when she grabbed my arm and almost literally began pulling me towards the house, I wasn't too surprised._

_"Just one, but the Meowth you brought me last time evolved! She's absolutely gorgeous now, and Pidgey is as adorable as ever!" she rambled on about her two Pokemon as she opened the door to her modest home, and dragged me inside, shutting the door behind us. "Persian! Pidgey!" she called, and the small bird flew in from the other room, and a long, lanky Persian lifted its head from the couch to look at us. It yawned in our general direction and laid its head back down. Pidgey landed on her shoulder, nuzzling up to her warmly. The smile stayed on my face as I watched her interact with her two Pokemon; she was so happy and…worry free here._

"_Lance? What's wrong?" she asked, looking at me, her eyes still glowing. I waved off her concern with a wave of my hand._

"_It's nothing. It just makes me happy to see you happy." I said gently, and her smile got even bigger._

"_I love it here. It's so beautiful. Would you like to sit down?" she asked, leading me over to the couch and the recliner placed in front of a small TV._

"_I would love to." I sat on the couch next to Persian, who looked at me, looked at her, and then quietly slid off the couch to slink into the other room; her bedroom. _

"_Don't mind her, she__ had a hard day of training yesterday." I looked at her, obviously she must have gone into the Berry Forest._

"_You need to be careful going into the Berry Forest," I scolded lightly, and her grey eyes met mine. "Wild Hypno could hypnotize you if you're not careful."_

"_Lance, how could that ever happen if I have you worrying and looking out for me all the time?" she teased, and I couldn't respond to that. Pidgey then flew off her shoulder as she sat down beside me, taking my hand into hers. "Because of you, this is possible." I squeezed her hand gently, darker thoughts looming in my mind._

"_I just worry…." I whispered. Then suddenly the happy, warm image of that day vanished into darkness as I found myself at the Indigo Plateau, holding my ground in front of a vehement Lorelei._

"_What the hell is wrong with you?!" I yelled, Dragonite also glowering at her as he stood beside me._

"_What's wrong with me?!" Lorelei shrieked, obviously not herself at the moment. "What's wrong with YOU and that…that GIRL?!" I clenched my fists and nodded at Dragonite, who responded with a Hyper Beam aimed at Lorelei's precious Lapras. It hit dead on, knocking the poor Pokemon out. Lorelei yelled in outrage over my clear use of power, but _I _was the _Champion,_ not her, and as a member of the Elite Four (especially as the weakest) she needed to respect my wishes and heed my warnings, and follow my orders. Which she had blatantly not done, and now Vivian was not only hurt, I didn't know where she was-_

_The images and sounds of the battle vaporized as quickly as they had come, leaving me running through the darkness of the Dragon's Den, following Vivian's screams. I was eleven again and my short legs weren't moving fast enough. The cool air of the den hurt my lungs as I ran, following my mentor, and before I knew what was happening-_

"Lance! Wake up!" I awoke with a start, my hand shooting up and latching onto Vivian's arm, her grey eyes watching me with great concern. I was breathing heavily, my brow matted with sweat.

_Just a dream._ I thought bitterly, closing my eyes as I breathed in deeply.

"Are you ok?" she asked gently, not having moved away even though I had a death grip on her arm. "First you were just tossing a little but then you started tossing and turning...I figured you must have been having a nightmare..." I opened my eyes, unable to not look into hers. They were so full of concern, even though she didn't remember me; it melted my heart just a little bit more.

"It's alright. I'm fine." I said gently, relaxing my grip on her arm. "Just a nightmare." I said quietly, raising my other hand to run it through my hair. She continued to sit on the edge of my bed, her eyes full of understanding.

"I'm sorry…would you like to talk about it? I find talking about nightmares makes them less likely to occur on a regular basis." I sighed, and let go of her arm.

"No…it's a burden I have to bear on my own." I said quietly. One day, she might understand. The look on her face said she was clearly disappointed, but she didn't argue as I rolled over and got out of bed.

"We need to get a move on." I said, changing the subject. "If we want to make good ground today, that is."

* * *

**Vivian's POV**

After a hurried breakfast and quick shower, I was waiting on Lance down in the lobby. Lance had advised wearing long pants during our forest trek, so I was wearing blue jeans and a light blue tank top, my hair up in a ponytail as usual, sporting my sambas again.

"Are you setting off this morning?" I looked over to see a girl about my age talking to me. She had long, thin red hair that was tied back into a messy ponytail, and her eyes were blue. She was wearing a white tank top with black gloves that went up to her elbows, and she had on blue short shorts with black Converse. She also had a watch on her left wrist. Finally, she had a belt with two Pokeballs on it, and she had a dark blue messenger bag slung over her shoulder.

"Indeed I am…" I said, not sure of whether I should be friendly with her or not. She had this look in her eye that kind of said "If you talk to me wrong I'll kick your ass".

"Did you just become a trainer?" she asked, smiling. I nodded.

"Did you?" I asked, noting that her clothes were incredibly clean.

"I did! I set out from Pallet yesterday morning." She said, smiling.

"Oh yeah? So did I!" I said, smiling also. I guess she couldn't be that bad if she was a new trainer too.

"Which Pokemon did you choose?" she asked excitedly.

"Charmander." I said proudly. "You?"

"Squirtle! She's so cute!" she said giggling, and I forced a laugh. Then she looked at her watch. "Oh no! I have to get going! It was nice meeting you….um…."

"Vivian." I informed her.

"Well it was nice meeting you Vivian! I'm Aurora! Gotta run!" and with that, she dashed off and out the door, leaving me slightly confused and disappointed. I wanted to battle. );

"Right….well then…." I said, recollecting myself as I adjusted the straps of my own backpack.

"Shall we get going?" I jumped as I heard Lance's voice come from behind me. He was smiling, actually smiling, not smirking, as today he was wearing a shirt that was almost exactly the same as the one he had been wearing last night, except that it was black, and he had on cargo pants that were tucked into the same boots that he had been wearing yesterday. He had a red bag slung over his shoulders, and it looked incredibly worn out. His Poke balls remained on his belt though.

"Sounds good to me." I said, returning his smile. Waking him up this morning had shaken me up a little; I had to wonder if nightmares like that were common with him. I didn't have a chance to say anything though as he walked past me and opened the door, holding it open for me as I followed.

Viridian Forest…was really kind of scary looking. The trees rose up around the rest house, and the small dirt clearing by the house soon led into a well beaten path between the trees. It was really kind of eerie, with the cries of Pokemon deep in the forest to be heard. Lance didn't seem to noticed my nervousness though as he walked right past me and down the path.

As I walked after him, I noticed how the grass was also annoyingly tall, and I understood why Lance said to wear pants. I wondered how Aurora felt, in those short shorts…However, my thoughts were suddenly averted when I realized something.

I hadn't fought a trainer yet.

"Lance…" I called, and he looked over his shoulder at me. "I just realized that I haven't fought another trainer yet." He blinked, and laughed.

"Don't worry too much." He said lightly, his eyes still laughing. "There will be plenty of Bug Catchers in here to fight you." He returned his gaze to the forest in front of him, and when I looked over my shoulder, I had to restrain myself from crying out. The building had vanished.

…

I quickened my pace so that Lance was only an arm's length away if I needed to clutch onto him for something. Suddenly I spotted a yellow worm with a horn on its head, and a stinger on its tail, inching its way alongside me. I stopped and stared at it, and it stopped to stare at me.

"Weedle?" it questioned. I whipped out my Pokedex, and I looked back at it. Perfect.

"Spearow!" Spearow flashed to my side, and I glowed at her. She was bristling at the sight of the Weedle. "Peck attack."

"Spearow!" she cried, launching herself at the unsuspecting bug. The Weedle tried to defend itself, but as Spearow retreated, it only seemed dazed.

"Again!" I commanded, and she flew at it again, this time knocking it out. "Excellent!" I cried, hugging her, noting she had gotten slightly bigger from the battle. I checked the dex to find out that she had grown a level. Lance had stopped walking to wait for me, and I caught up to him, Spearow back in her ball.

"Any reason you decided to attack the Weedle?" he asked.

"Charmander is at level 7, while Spearow is now at level 4. I need to train them." I said, shrugging. Lance cocked his head in agreement and we continued on in silence. After almost two hours of random wild Pokemon encounters, I spotted something more yellow then a Weedle.

"What's that?" I asked no one in particular as I raced over to see what it was. I kneeled down by the edge of the path to come face to face with a yellow mouse. It had black tips on its ears, yellow cheeks, two brown stripes on its back, and a tail that looked like a lightning bolt.

"Pika?" it sniffed my face, and I couldn't help but glow at the huggableness of this Pokemon.

"And what are you…?" I pulled out my Pokedex, and it registered as Pikachu. I grinned. I had found the newest member of my team. That is, before it bolted into the trees.

"HEY WAIT A MINUTE!" I dashed off after it, while Lance yelled at me to stop. I didn't really care; he could take care of himself. I mean, I _did_ care, but at the same time...I wanted this Pikachu, and I was not going to stop until I got it. I chased it far away from the beaten dirt path, and before long I could no longer hear Lance. Occasionally Pikachu would stop and catch a breather, but then it would realize that I was still chasing it, and it would bolt off in another direction again. Three hard, weed destroying, bug terrorizing, Lance-ignoring hours of this, I sank to the ground, defeated.

"Alright…" I breathed, "You…win…Pika…..chu….." I fell on my back, staring up into the tree tops, feeling utterly defeated. I closed my eyes, still breathing heavily, and when I opened my eyes, I found Pikachu sitting on my chest.

"…hi." I said uncertaintly.

"Pika Pika Pika Pi!" it giggled, and I groaned.

"Aw….but Pikachu….you beat me!" I whined, throwing my head back onto the ground which was probably not a great idea because I hit a root. Ignoring the throbbing pain in my head, I slowly sat up, and Pikachu hopped off, still laughing at me. I grabbed an empty Poke ball and showed it to it. Pikachu stopped laughing and sniffed it curiously.

"Would you like to be my Pokemon?" I asked hopefully, and it looked at me, then back at the ball.

"Piiiiika!" It jumped back on all fours, sparks flying from its cheeks.

"Oh so I have to beat you?" I asked, standing up, grabbing my empty ball and replacing it with Charmander's. It nodded vigorously, and I released Charmander.

"Char!" Charmander cried, obviously much bigger and stronger than Pikachu, but the mouse didn't back down.

"Charmander, ember!" I commanded, and Charmander released a torrent of fire, barely scorching Pikachu as it dodged the attack.

"PIKA!" Pikachu let loose an electric shock, shocking Charmander, although not all that badly. So it continued for several minutes before Pikachu looked ready to pass out. I threw the empty Poke ball at it, where it flashed, landed on the ground, and shook for a few seconds before remaining still. I was too tired to cheer. Suddenly, a sharp stinging sensation shot through my calf, and I whipped my head around to see a Weedle angrily jabbing me with the stinger on its tail. Blood was dripping from the rather large wound on my calf, and I felt my leg begin to go numb.

"Shit…" I muttered, and I kicked the Weedle away as Charmander rushed over to my rescue. "Too many...damn _bugs_ in this forest..."

"Ember…" I said weakly, and Charmander quickly made work of the Weedle, who scuttled off into the tall grass. I gingerly sat down, Charmander taking a protective stance in front of me. I reached around in my backpack to fish for my Pokenav, to call Lance, when I opened it and realized I didn't have his number. I looked around, realizing I had no idea where I was, and the numbness in my leg was spreading quickly.

"This….isn't good…." I muttered, and I found Spearow's ball and released her. She cawed indignantly at me realizing this wasn't a battle, but she quickly calmed down as she saw I was hurt.

"Go…find Lance…or anyone…to help…" I held onto my leg, the pain throbbing through it, and I laid down on the ground, trying to focus as Spearow flew off above the trees...

* * *

_*in Spongebob narrator voice*_

_What's the deal with Lance's dream?_

_Who the heck is this Aurora girl we just met?_

_And will anyone save Vivian?_

_FIND OUT NEXT TIME INNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN NN _

_Chapter 7!_

* * *

Review/subscribe please! :)

Also, if there are any typos and such, send me a PM letting me know and I'll fix it. :)


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